When Your Heart Grows Cold
by TisforTwee
Summary: Set post game . Seeking out answers for a major sleep problem, Shulk stumbles upon a history of a world that has been long forgotten . This is the story of a curious young man, a conflicted relationship, a war between two higher beings, and how a forgotten history can effect lives in the present .*Contains Major Spoilers* Told in the POV of several characters .
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own Xenoblade. I am just dazzled by the brilliant masterpiece Monolithsoft has created, and it inspired me to write a story that delves into the past lives of Meyneth and Zanza. Monolithsoft owns all the rights to Xenoblade Chronicles. Thank you.**

**When Your Heart Grows Cold**

**A Xenoblade Chronicles Fanfiction.**

**By: TisforTwee**

**Prologue**

_Lightning struck nearby. It was as if his words were creating the bright heavy flashes around them. At least, that's what it felt like._

_"Why not leave this place? We could easily create another world of our own." _

_"Because our people… They need us." She gritted her teeth. Frustration overcame her. "They need structure and guidance in their lives. We are the only ones who can give that to them. They need gods to lead them down the right path and mold their world and futures for them" Meyneth breathed. _

_"My people have forgotten who Iam." He exaggerated the "I" the best he could. Zanza paused, clearly frustrated with where this was going. His eyes were as blue as ice, but his determination made them look as though the flames of hell devoured them." There is no use for them. They would be better off annihilated."_

_"Klaus, they are living beings. You cannot say that about your children." Meyneth said as calmly as she could. "I cannot believe you are acting this way."_

_ "I created this world for you Meyneth." Zanza said flatly. _

_"We created this world together" Meyneth breathed. "We are equals, and what happens we both must agree on."_

_Lightning struck again nearby. Neither of them flinched. _

_"No." Zanza curled his lips into what could have been described as a sinister look or smile. "I single handedly created this universe, and I can make whatever decisions I want." He paused. "The only reason you are even a god is because I wished that of your existence. I could have left you out of this universe, and then…." He fell silent, catching himself before he finished. He turned to the side, avoiding her eye contact. _

_Silence took over. Meyneth waited patiently for him to finish his thought, but he didn't. Her mind was racing. She had enough of his thought process. She sharply glared at him._

_ "Is that so?" she almost spat, "Is the beauty of what WE created together no longer enough? You wanted a world where we could be together. You spent YEARS of your life thinking this world through before it was even created! This is what you wanted Klaus: A world for both of us to create and be equal. Is that no longer enough for you? Has the taste of power truly rotted your soul?" Meyneth waited for him to respond, but the silence continued. "You traded your heart and sanity for the endless power of a god. Klaus. I never thought you could be so heartless." She finally finished. _

_"Klaus…" He turned, purposefully not looking at her, his fists clenching. "You, Meyneth, have no right to call me that. I am no longer that mortal, and I will not be called the name of a mortal!"_

_Meyneth kept her gaze on him. Standing completely still she didn't say a word._

_Zanza remained silent, and after what felt like an eternity, Zanza looked at Meyneth, the sanity gone from his face and eyes. _

_"As always Meyneth, you are wrong. I created this world to mold to my desire, not for you to tell me what I can and cannot do." His eyes began to glow bright blue. He laughed. "From now on you will only know me as Zanza, the one and only TRUE god of this world. If you defy me, I will annihilate you!" _

_Lightning struck all around, this time catching Meyneth's attention. When she looked back he raised himself into the sky and disappeared – laughing._


	2. Shulk 1

**Shulk**

The sound of lightning made him jolt up. Annoyed with the sudden disruption of sleep he looked outside his window from his bed. Getting out of bed, Shulk gave a heavy sigh and leaned on the windowsill. Another flash of lightning struck in what everyone was calling the "salty sea." Intrigued by the artistic beauty of it hitting the water, he decided he shouldn't be so annoyed with the lightning. It wasn't as if he was "waking up" anyway. What he was doing could barely be called "sleep." Sleep was something that refreshed one's body. What he was getting was quite the opposite. Sleep was something he had continued to struggle with since the creation of the new world. Yes he dreamed, but after everything that happened he soon realized that dreaming was just as exhausting as being awake. This was due to his reoccurring dreams of Zanza and Meyneth.

During the day it was as if he had not even gone to bed. He would spend countless hours in his lab conducting studies on himself. The information he gathered most of the time came back to the energy he emitted from when he was using the Monado. This always perplexed him, especially since neither of the Monados existed in this world. Frustrated with his findings he would leave his lab to seek out any tranquility he could find. Sitting near the shore used to provide him with relaxation, but stopped with the constant feeling of being awake. Reyn had suggested fishing, but when he tried to fish he would catch himself dozing off, usually just before he would lean forward and slide off the dock. Sometimes he didn't catch himself, and he would end up soaked.

When he gave up on relaxation techniques he tried altering his sleep patterns. At first he would try to sleep at different times of the day figuring that it was due to all of the recent adventuring. Taking the night watch was something that put a lot of stress on his body. These things did not appear to faze Dunban, Reyn, or Fiora on their adventures. They so easily pressed on each morning. He eventually got to that point, but he always struggled with pressing on when he needed to rest. After weeks of trying different times, he decided that time wasn't the issue. Plus his involvement with the technology committee wouldn't allow for sleeping the hours of his choosing.

He would then try to set an alarm that would wake him up anytime he was going into his dream phase of sleep. He soon found out that he did not need to be in deep sleep to start dreaming, and waking up every 2 hours had worn on him even more. Not only that, he was beginning to have daydreams about the two. Frustratingly enough the daydreams didn't stop with trying to sleep normally either.

He did always have that helpless feeling something was missing now that he was no longer sharing a body with Zanza. Shulk thought that these dreams were fantasies he made up after finding out that Zanza only desired companionship. At one point he was convinced Zanza had left Shulk with these thoughts as a final stab at him for taking his place as a "god."

Shulk let out another heavy sigh and looked at his clock. It was 5:00am, and he had to be at a colony meeting at 7:30am. He played with the idea of asking Dunban to take his place, but this meeting was specifically about the technology needed to expand Colony 9. He pouted for a couple seconds: something that was very out of character for him. Without feeling replenished each day, it was hard to keep his composure, especially when he was by himself.

* * *

"Shulk, you look exhausted."

Fiora held the frying pan full of the new egg scramble recipe she was trying out over Shulk's plate. The egg made a splat on his place. Shulk just stared at it. Fiora leaned over and looked straight into his eyes.

"I'm worried about you. I don't feel like you're taking care of yourself…." Fiora took the empty pan to the sink and poured water over it. "This is the 3rd day in a row you just stared at my cooking… Do you not like my cooking?"

Shulk let out a tiny sigh - She _always_ did this. She would be concerned about him, and then internalize it into something that she could be doing wrong. She sounded and looked so defeated. Shulk wanted to tell her it wasn't her cooking; in fact he loved when she cooked and tried new recipes. She would always get on his case for having such simple responses for things she asked. He was trying harder to give her more detailed feedback - especially when it came to her cooking. He was just so exhausted today.

"Fiora, your cooking is great." Shulk paused, "I have not been all that hungry lately I guess…"

"If you want me to make more familiar recipes, I will. I'm just worried because you have not been eating much lately." Fiora sat across from him holding the rinsed spatula in her hand - tapping it against her forehead. "What's going on with you?"

Shulk opened his mouth, closed it, and then looked back at his food. He wanted to tell her about his dreams, but at the same time he didn't want to worry her. She was also recovering. With her adjustment to being a Homs again there was no need for that kind of stress on her new body. The truth was that it bothered him that the dreams were now becoming part of his conscious thought. He had told Fiora about some of the dreams he'd been having, but nothing recently. Before when he brought it up she would get very quiet. It was the only time she didn't pry into what was going on with him. She would just listen, and then the responses were limited. It would end in an awkward silence. With these new daydreams he didn't know how she would handle it.

"I'm worried about how this plan to expand Colony 9 is going to go." Shulk lied.

Fiora put her chin on her hands and stared intently at him, looking as though she was debating on whether or not to believe him. It was clear she was waiting for more of an explanation. Shulk took a stab at the egg on his plate and swirled his fork around.

"And…I am…" He looked across the dining room at an old picture of him, Fiora and Reyn collecting scraps as kids. He looked back at Fiora "The head of the technology committee, which happens to be the main topic of today's meeting," He said quickly.

"What you've been working on looks great Shulk. Why are you so worried?"

_"Why are you so worried? I'm sure the Biocreation Department will love the idea! And you are Zanza the great after all!" _ He could hear Meyneth giggling. Shulk shook his head with the thought. That was a new setting for his dreams. Was he losing his sense of reality? Fiora continued to wait for a response.

"Because…" He thought of a great idea. "The last three days I have been working on this idea with some of the other members of the group, and I'm beginning to feel like the officials are expecting more from what I have come up with. I've been having some trouble sleeping, and I've been working long hours to make sure it's what it should be…yeah, that's what it is."

It wasn't a complete lie. This project had been putting a lot of stress on him, and he _was_ somewhat concerned how the meeting will go. It didn't help that he was presenting after Melia and Meyneth, who both had countless ideas to incorporate their own technology in the advancement of the Homs technology. Fiora sighed and began tapping the spatula against her head again.

_"I think if we take both of our ideas to the department, they might give us rights to proceed with the experiments of world creation… That is if you're willing to take that risk of working with me with other people knowing." _

Again with the daydream of Meyneth, but she looked different. She looked like a mortal. Where was this coming from? He silently willed the thought to go away. He looked at Fiora, who looked like Meyneth. He really was losing his sense of reality. He closed his eyes for a second, and opened them to the familiar look of Fiora sitting across him. He let out a sigh of relief. Fiora blinked at him.

"I don't understand. Melia and Vanea are going to be with you, and their knowledge on the combination of our technologies, and what can be done from here should tell the people a lot!" Fiora smiled at him. "And from what I've seen from your blueprints on the machinery to be used, it looks wonderful. I can't wait to see it in action."

Shulk was growing annoyed with the conversation. He already knew all of this, and he was relatively confident about the blueprints, and especially of Vanea and Melia's knowledge and ideas. He twirled his fork in the scramble and attempted to eat. He appreciated her concern, cooking, and the positive reinforcement, but he was too tired to keep coming up with topics for this conversation. He swallowed a large mouthful of her food and smiled.

"It's delicious," he truly meant it.

Fiora let her lips form an ear to ear smile, and then a happy sigh. Shulk realized how hungry he actually was and finished the scramble. It was exceptionally good. He noted that forcing himself to eat at times could help him out. Maybe that is why the dreams are forming during the day now. When he was done Fiora grabbed his plate and silverware, and began to wash the dishes. Shulk sat back in his seat.

"Where's Dunban at?" He finally asked.

"I think he is getting checked by Linada. They're trying to get his right arm back to normal functioning" Fiora paused and turned around, "Which reminds me, I have an appointment with her today." She put the last dish on the drying rack and dried her hands.

Linada had been working with Fiora on exercises, tests, and daily checkups to make sure the new parts of her body were not being rejected by the old. Linada and Vanea worked hard together to come up with Hom cell growth, and even harder to incorporate it in today's advanced medicine. That was one of the amazing medical technologies that came from the Machina, and it was working well with Fiora and Dunban. There were some scares at the beginning when Fiora's Machina body was at its end. At times there was no telling if Fiora would live through it. They carefully replaced one part of her body at a time. Fiora had the will to keep going, and with each body part she began to look healthier. They kept Meyneth's triangular soul stone because oddly enough it helped with her recovery. The soul stone was the last thing to come off, and before everyone knew it Fiora was herself again. Everyone was worried how her new body would heal without the soul stone, but at this point she was almost 100%. Vanea said it was Fiora's will to keep going that made the transition such a success. With a little more exercise and tests she would be almost back to what she was before the attack on Colony 9. Shulk became almost nostalgic thinking about those times before all of their adventures. It seemed liked so long ago.

"And speaking of Linada…" Fiora interrupted Shulk's thought. "If you're having trouble sleeping, maybe she can help you."

Shulk did think of that before. He played with the idea of seeing her, but he was too proud. He didn't want to go through the embarrassment of not being able to diagnose his problem on his own. It was becoming too much for him now. It would only be an act of desperation at this point. Maybe she would be able to help. She had to know a lot about brain patterns with working with Fiora.

"That is actually a really good idea." Shulk finally admitted. He thought about how he could see her today. "Thanks Fiora, I'll see if she'll see me after the meeting."

"I think that's a great idea." Fiora smiled and hugged Shulk. He hesitantly put his arms around her. He wasn't very good at this kind of thing. His heart accelerated "I'm so glad our lives are back to normal. I hope every day can be like this," she continued. She held him tight and put her head in his chest. He swallowed dryly.

"Me too Fiora…" He struggled to think of something else to say. "I'm so glad that…" He bit his lip, thinking about the time he thought she was gone, "I don't have to worry about you not being around." Realizing what he was feeling he instinctively held her more tightly. The helplessness he felt when he thought he lost her forever overcame him. He didn't want to let her go "I don't want to feel that way ever again."

Fiora looked up at him and smiled and ear to ear smile again. She stepped away and slid her hand into his. Shulk blushed, suddenly rethinking every word he said to her. Fiora giggled.

"Thank you Shulk. I'm so lucky to have you in my life, and that I get another chance with this life… with us together."

She kissed him on the cheek and let go of his hand slowly as she left the house. Shulk watched her leave and put his hand on his face. As the door closed he looked at his reflection in the door. He was flushed and he felt hot against his hand. Shulk and Fiora had been deemed a couple by everyone in the Colony. That was kind of a given, and it just felt right. That being said, it bothered Shulk that they still had yet to make any advances in their relationship. It was something they were both shy about, and he did not want hinder Fiora's recovery in any way. That didn't mean he didn't want to touch her though. Sure, they did live together, but they both slept in different rooms. They still had yet to take it to the next level, and actually enjoy the touch of one another. They had experimented before everything happened, and shared several moments back when they were adventuring, but there had been little to nothing since. He shook his head and looked at the clock, 7:20am – he needed to hurry and get to that meeting.

* * *

Shulk let out a long tired sigh. The meeting took longer than Shulk wanted it to. The committee presented several ideas for expansion, housing, and forming more stable ideas for transport. Shulk's blueprints went well with the representatives at the meeting, but it appeared they wanted more than what was there. Shulk found this frustrating since so much work had been put into it already. The Colony officials gave him the go on starting the plans for building what was on the blueprints, but they wanted to see more ideas at the next meeting. Perhaps he should bring Fiora to the next meeting and she could present on nutrition and the success of the Flamii house for fresh eggs. Shulk let out what could be described as a yawn and a sigh at the same time while leaving the meeting. He needed to get to Linada's. He hoped he was not putting too much confidence in her ability to come up with a diagnosis. At this point he would take anything he could get to feel refreshed from sleeping. He didn't know how much more he could handle with feeling like he was awake all the time.

"Wait! Shulk!" A formal voice sounded from behind him.

Shulk turned around to see his High Entia friend running to catch up with him. Her portion of the meeting appeared to go much better than what Shulk presented. She had that advantage with all the new mechanical and medical technology presented to the Homs of the new Colony 9. She leaned over to catch her breath when she caught up.

"Thank you kindly for waiting for me." She was panting; she held her breath to try to calm down.

"Of course Melia, What's up?" Shulk didn't want to rush her, but he wanted to catch Linada before she left The Clinic.

"I just wanted to let you know not to take what the officials said to you too harshly. The presentations Vanea and I gave were hard acts to follow." Melia giggled a bit. "But in all honesty Shulk, I thought what you presented was wonderful, and it used all of the available technology perfectly. I wanted to tell you that back there, but you left so quickly."

She was right, he did leave abruptly, but he had good reason for it. Getting to the Clinic had been the only thing on his mind during the meeting, which thinking back at it could have affected the tone of his presentation. He wanted to be at 100% sooner rather than later.

"Thank you Melia, I will keep that in mind… I still do need to come up with some fresh ideas though." Shulk started to yawn.

"Oh Shulk, you look like you have been working so hard lately. Why not take a day off for some rest? The next meeting is not for another month."

_"You shouldn't work yourself so hard. If you deprive yourself of sleep, there's no telling where your mind will go…" _

Shulk scratched his head hoping the daydream didn't continue. Sometimes it was so hard to differentiate whether or not Meyneth was actually there talking to him, or if he was just day dreaming. Why did these thoughts flash in and out of his conscious mind?

Shulk looked straight past Melia. If only she knew what sleeping meant for him. He held back a smart remark about his current sleeping patterns by biting his tongue. Annoyance was becoming a common emotion for him. He knew Melia and Fiora meant well, but his lack of alertness was weighing on him. He was also well aware Melia had feelings for him, and he did not want to risk delving into that again, at least not right now. "Yeah Melia, I should be able to sleep better now that this meeting is finally over."

"You have been having trouble sleeping?" She put her hand on her cheek.

Shulk bit his tongue and did everything he could not to moan and let his head slide back in annoyance. It was his own fault for not watching what he was saying. Even if he had time to talk about it, he didn't want to. Melia is a strong woman, but her emotions and heart are fragile. Like Fiora, he didn't want her to worry about him. He had little idea to how she was handling the aftermath of their adventures, and not to mention the news that him and Fiora are official now. He didn't want her to think about him more than she had to, not with how she felt about him. He could only imagine how emotionally distraught she was. He sighed and swallowed his pride.

"I'm actually going to see Linada to talk to her about any ideas for relaxation techniques… or if there is anything she could give me for it." Shulk admitted. Sometimes it was best to be as truthful as possible with Melia.

"Oh Shulk, is there anything I can do to help? Do you need to talk about anything?" She paused, "Vanea and I are going to Little Nopom's – they just opened up last week. I want to try it. Would you like to join us?"

Like most people their age living in a developing colony, visiting local pubs after committee meetings was Melia's new favorite pastime. She would oftentimes ask Shulk if he wanted to go. Shulk would get his normal wheat beer while she would get a high priced girly mixed drink – which was all she needed. Even with a royal upbringing Melia had been succumbing to her Homs desires. Times do change. The last time him and Melia went to a committee meeting together they ended up at a local pub, which in turn ended with her intoxicated and crying in his arms about how she was not good enough for him. This was out of character for her. As a matter of fact even agreeing to get a drink at a local pub was far from her normal activities at the time. She would then compare herself to Fiora. This was awkward. Before this he was not aware of how deeply she thought and felt about him. He had ideas before, but this left nothing to his imagination. It was almost too much information. He never knew how to handle these kinds of situations, or even what to say. What made it even more awkward was that she began talking about Dunban shortly after. He had always had suspicions about the two, especially toward the end of their adventures. He would shake his head of the thought. Luckily she never brought up that time afterwards, nor did she appear to remember, so Shulk never mentioned it. His mind couldn't handle the thought of Melia and Dunban as an item right now. It was something even his most alert mind would have trouble comprehending. Perhaps that was one of the reasons she became interested in going to local Pubs. Although Little Nopom's did not sound like a pub Dunban would go into, at least he didn't think so.

"Thank you Melia, but I'm okay at this point. I just need to see Linada and try and get some adequate sleep."

"Let me know if you need anything Shulk, I'll always be here if you need me." She put her hand over her chest. Shulk put his hand on her shoulder and she blushed.

"Thank you Melia, I will definitely let you know if I do." He meant this.

Shulk made his way over to The Clinic and sighed in relief. He realized it was probably better that he got out as late as he did so he didn't run into Fiora on his way in. He didn't want to accidentally snap on anyone who was providing him sympathy. That would be wrong in so many ways.

* * *

"It sounds like some kind of PTSD, which happens when you put too much than you can handle on yourself." Linada lowered Shulk's chair to the point where it was perpendicular to the machine she was going to hook him up to.

"That's what I originally thought too, but this has been going on even before I was assigned as a committee leader." Shulk sighed, "I'm sleeping, but it's as if I'm constantly awake. It doesn't make any sense."

Linada stopped the chair and flashed a light in his eyes. He blinked several times. He waited for her to respond. She closed her eyes and put the light away.

"What have you tried as far as relaxation techniques?" Linada taped the light against her cheek.

"I've tried everything." He stopped and looked at her, she was waiting for specifics. "Sitting near the dock, fishing, changing my sleep patterns, working in my lab, taking walks." He touched a finger for each "method" he said.

"And what happened with each of those?"

"Well, they didn't work." He sighed, "And when I tried to change my sleep pattern the dreams stared happening during the day." He wished she would get on with the tests. He already thought of all this when he was in his lab. She hooked Shulk up to the machine.

"It's so odd." Linada finally said after what felt like hours.

"What's odd?" Shulk looked back and forth at the machine near the chair. "You didn't even do the tests yet…."

"No, that's not what I'm talking about." She began preparing the machine to do some scans. She rolled her chair over to Shulk.

"What did you mean then?"

"It's just…" Linada looked at the furthest wall from them. "Have you talked with Fiora about any of this?"

"No way! She does not need any more stress than what she is going through right now." Shulk snapped. He then paused, wondering why she was asking. "Why?"

She sighed and looked straight into his eyes. She looked like she was contemplating on staying silent and starting the tests, or saying what she was thinking.

"I can't say what is going on with Fiora." She started flipping some switches on the machine. Shulk's eyes widened. He felt the feeling of helplessness consuming him all over again.

"Tell me, what's going on with Fiora!" Shulk sat up, now more concerned about what she was going through than his own health. He couldn't bear the thought of something happening to her again. "Is she alright?" There was a silence. "At least tell me if she is going to be alright or not!"

"Lay back down, if you move around too much the scan won't come out right." Linada responded.

"I'm not lying back down until you answer me."

Linada gave him a look of annoyance.

"Then I guess we won't do any tests, and you can continue to have these sleeping problems." She sighed. "Fiora is going to be fine. She is actually doing extremely well."

Shulk sighed and lied back down.

"Why didn't you just say that then?" Shulk grumbled. Although he was relieved Fiora was doing so well.

Linada turned the machine on, still avoiding the answer to any of his questions.

"Let's get these tests done, and then I'll be able to give you more of an answer." She paused. "Don't worry about Fiora right now, everything is fine with her."

"Do you think this will tell you what is going on with me?"

Linada looked at him, "I'm going to need to take pictures of your brain while you are awake and asleep. Since this is about your quality of sleep I'm going to need you to try and fall asleep first to see what I can find. I will let you know what I find when I find it, it just may take some time." She paused, "Do you need a sedative?" She handed him a mask.

Shulk had no problems falling asleep; it was that he never _felt_ he was sleeping. He closed his eyes and let the machine do its work. Of course while he was first being read he didn't have any thoughts about Zanza or Meyneth. Maybe it _was_ all about his stress level, and the panic he felt when he couldn't diagnose himself with a problem. The feelings of helplessness did not help. All that mattered was he felt relaxed at this very moment, and with that he began to doze off.


	3. Fiora 1

**Fiora**

Sometimes she felt like she had a one track mind. She couldn't help but worry about Shulk. From what she noticed, his eating patterns had changed drastically over the last year and a half. Ever since their battle with Zanza and the recreation of the world Shulk had not bounced back to his normal self. Not to say that anyone really "bounced back." Everyone was different from before, but it looked like Shulk was the most different. There was a gradual change in his appetite. In the beginning he appeared to be okay, but then he began to look more and more tired each day. The more tired he looked, the less he ate. Fiora had to remind him he needed to eat. He was by no means skipping meals, and for the most part he got what he needed for his daily nutrition, but it was still a concern to Fiora. She would often wonder if he would let himself waste away if something happened to her again.

It seemed that everything around them was flourishing since everyone joined together at New Colony 9. That is, everything beside her and Shulk. She had problems of her own with her new body, so her love life came second. Now that she was her own being again she thought she could concentrate on her relationship with Shulk. She still felt some limitations though – and that didn't necessarily mean limitations with her body. They were both habitually shy. Although, lately it bugged her that she still felt her body was being shared with Meyneth. Not that she ever minded Meyneth's company when she was resurrected as a Mechon, but it should have been different now. After all this time and effort going into making her a Homs again, it felt awkward to still feel like two people. As much as she wanted to be with Shulk to find out what is going on with him, he had his own things to tend to, and she had to concentrate on recovering from yet another body exchange.

"Try any new recipes lately?" Linada asked while washing her hands. She always loved hearing about Fiora's cooking endeavors.

"Yes, I did actually." Fiora sighed, "I tried a new egg scramble from the fresh eggs we got from Flamii house me and Shulk set up."

"And how did that go?"

"He just stared at it at first," Fiora sighed again, "but I guess he did eat it… so maybe it had nothing to do with my cooking…" Fiora was dazed- she couldn't help but worry about Shulk's wellbeing.

"I was asking how you liked it, but I guess you do base your cooking on how Shulk reacts to it." Linada giggled. "Why did he just stare at it? You're a wonderful cook. Maybe it was just the recipe?"

It was hard to take Linada seriously since Homs food was a new experience for her. She didn't get to cook very much on Mechonis due to the lack of fresh materials. Even on the fallen arm she never thought to try anything of the like. The Mechon did not need fresh food like the Homs did. She now had access to Fiora's advice and the resources, so Linada always looked for tips when trying these recipes herself. She always said she was not too crazy about the food and eating habits of the creatures from the Bionis, but she was intrigued by the act of cooking and trying different foods. Fiora reconsidered it. Since Linada disliked Homs eating habits, something definitely could be taken from her complimenting her cooking.

"Oh, well…" Fiora looked to the other side of the room, "I'm a little worried about Shulk. He looks so exhausted. It's been going on for a while now. I noticed him skipping meals, and I have to remind him to eat. I'm just worried about him. I know I should be concentrating on my recovery, but it's so hard to see him like that and move forward you know?"

"Did you try talking to him about it?" Linada put her hand on her cheek.

That was a hard question to answer. He did talk with her about not being able to sleep right some time ago, but she wasn't sure if that was still the case. At the time she didn't know what to say when he described the way he was feeling. It was the only time her head went blank. She had been experiencing similar dreams, but she didn't think much of it. She wanted to tell him that, but she also did not want to undermine what he was saying. So she would just listen. She would consider that he had shared a body with the soul of Zanza his whole life, which was much longer than the time she spent with Meyneth. She could only imagine how he felt. It must have been a big life change for him. She wanted to tell him how her recovery has been going to ease his mind, but she too felt exhausted. She was beginning to question if her new body was failing. Recently she felt like she was still sharing a body with Meyneth, and she did not know how Shulk would react to that. She didn't even know how to react to that feeling.

"I did, but he didn't go much into it..." Fiora paused. "I have a question for you."

"Hmmm? Is it about the Neurohometric Cap?" Linada was preparing some of the devices for Fiora's exercises, including a cap she put on Fiora's head while she did exercises. The first few times Fiora would ask what the cap does, and then Linada would say it was to read her brain patterns in how they react with her body movements. Then she would go into even greater detail about the science behind it, and how her and Vanea worked together to come up with it. Fiora would just listen without much feedback – another topic that made her mind blank. Engineering topics were way over her head.

"No, you told me plenty about it…" She paused and regained her train of thought, "Is it normal to feel like I'm still sharing my body with Meyneth?" Fiora looked at Linada, "Has anyone else experienced this?"

Linada looked perplexed. She sat on her spinning chair and rolled over to the bed Fiora was sitting on.

"Well, we haven't done this with very many people besides you and Dunban, and we haven't mainstreamed the process yet. That being said, everyone reacts differently to treatment."

"Oh, so there's nothing to compare it to yet…" Fiora looked at the ground.

"Other than Dunban's treatment we do not have anything to compare it to. You are the first my dear." Linada smiled, "Your treatment and Duban's treatment are vastly different. It would be impossible to compare the two." She sighed lightly, "I must say though, from the way you are recovering, the treatment is going far better than anticipated. I cannot wait to share the results with Vanea so we can make this mainstream for advanced Homs medicine. There are so many Homs waiting for this kind of treatment, especially the ones who were turned into Mechon." Linada's mind was clearly elsewhere. Vanea was presenting medical advances at the committee meeting today, along with Shulk's ideas for expanding Colony 9 even further. Fiora realized she wasn't the only one absent from this session.

"What do you think it is?" Fiora interrupted her.

"What, that you feel like you're still sharing your body?" Linada paused briefly, "I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that you had Meyneth's soul stone on for the majority of your recovery."

"That doesn't make any sense; Meyneth has been gone from that soul stone since before we defeated Zanza."

"An immortal does not just 'die' my dear." Linada giggled, "Or so they say." Fiora continued to stare at her waiting for an answer. "Sorry, it's just something I've been thinking about lately. Just disregard. To be honest, I don't know. It could be neurological…" She then began to explain the Homs nervous system and brain structure to Fiora, which again went straight over her head. "Those are all possibilities, but I could always take some pictures of your brain activity!" Linada sounded too excited about this.

"Do you think you'll find anything?"

"I can't say. I'm just thinking you were so used to sharing a body, and now it feels like something is missing," Linada explained, "but I think it's worth a try to make sure your conscious and unconscious mind is working properly with the new body."

It was true. She did feel like a part of her died the day Meyneth sacrificed herself. She did still have the same brain from when she was half Mechon after all. Once again her mind rode on one track, and she couldn't help but think about Shulk and his transition.

"Alright, let's do that then!" Fiora smiled, "plus it would help with your research and what to present to the committee right?" Fiora was always looking for ways to be closer to what Shulk is doing.

"Exactly," Linada smiled, "but first things first – you need to complete your exercises so we can get that set of data first, and more importantly stay on track with your recovery."

Fiora groaned.

* * *

"This new device can read your brain patterns both while you are awake and while you are asleep. I've wanted to try it out since Vanea and I finished it, so this would be the perfect opportunity to do so." Linada glowed as she lowered Fiora's chair so she was at the machine's level.

"What do you need me to do?" Fiora looked skeptical, but all in all she trusted Linada with her life. She did save it several times after all. Not to mention she was able to help Shulk after what happened on the Mechonis.

"Well nothing at the moment, I'm going to take some pictures." Linada played with some of the buttons on the machine, and then pressed a tiny red button a couple of times. "I'm going to show you some images…"

"Of my brain? Already?" Fiora interrupted

"No…" Linada giggled "I'm going to show you some pictures of things in Colony 9 and see how your brain reacts to them."

"Oh….okay…." Fiora had no idea how Linada's devices worked. The Mechonis technology was so foreign to her. A picture of a Flamii came up and Fiora frowned, and then she heard a snap – the next pictured came up – it was of a group of Homs near the beach. More snaps, more pictures. Another snap, a picture of a topless Shulk came up. Fiora noticed her heart thump a little faster, and her face got red.

"That should be an interesting one," Linada giggled again.

"And what do you mean by that?" Fiora looked at her angry that she was giggling at her response.

"And that will be a good one as well," another snap. Fiora wondered if she had her in mind when she came up with this Machine. "Okay. I'm going to give you a small sedative to help you go into a dream state for a little bit."

"Are you sure we have time for this?" Fiora asked while Linada prepared a mask to put over Fiora's face.

"You'll only be out for a half an hour, and this is all within the time I had scheduled for you… Plus, I don't have any other patients today." Linada smiled and gave Fiora the mask to put on.

"Okay," Fiora paused, "Before we start, could I ask you a favor?" Linada gave a happy nod and a sound of approval. Fiora pursed her lips, "I know you're busy, but could you check on Shulk before you leave today? I'm really worried about him. He said he would come to the Clinic after the committee meeting."

"Sure, that shouldn't be a problem. I'll be here waiting for Vanea to come back anyway. We're going to discuss how the meeting went."

"I'm sure the committee officials will be pleased with what you present," Fiora reinforced. Linada smiled. Fiora then put the mask on, and before she knew it she was off in her dream world.


	4. Meyneth 1

_"The Machina generously shared the fruits of their civilization with the people of The Bionis. __They __believed their worlds would grow hand in hand…" – The words of a god – Meyneth_

**Meyneth **

The most recent encounter between her and Zanza was not one she could take lightly, not this time. The look in his eyes was different than the usual disagreements between them; it showed Meyneth that Zanza had truly meant what he said. This wasn't about making Meyneth angry this time. She still couldn't believe he would go through with destroying his people.

She had to admit - she was not surprised by the way he acted. She witnessed his enthusiasm digress little by little while he watched his people progress. His faith in his creation diminished when he realized the awareness of a god had faded on The Bionis. His faith in his people diminished with their lack of awareness. The people of The Bionis began to tell stories to one another about legends of the Titans. What children were being taught was far from what Zanza had originally wanted.

Frustrated with the current state of their world he had shown Meyneth ideas of the recreation of the world. Meyneth never agreed with him on these ideas. Instead, Meyneth encouraged him to create one follower that showed the ways of Zanza, but he was too stubborn. He always believed that people should believe in a god through faith, and a physical presence was not needed. This was where their mortal upbringing differed. She sympathized with the way he felt, yes, but no situation could be perfect. Zanza desired ultimate perfection. He felt that being a god gave him that entitlement. This was not the perfect world he desired for the both of them. Meyneth had her own ways of spreading awareness, which is why she stayed so close with Vanea. She knew Zanza considered this cheating. She couldn't help but feel bad for him though. Not to say she agreed with anything he was thinking.

She also couldn't say she had any problems with The Machina. They always adored and worshiped her. Her world had been thriving, and she was very happy with the way things were going. Zanza had once suggested an idea to leave the Mechonis and Bionis to build a new world elsewhere. Meyneth had respectfully declined stating that their people would be lost without the guidance of a god. She felt she couldn't put her people in that position. Zanza once said he felt the end was coming near for him, and everything that he is would vanish. Meyneth never knew what to tell him in these situations. He was too stubborn to listen to her and love his creations unconditionally. This was when the encounters between her and Zanza became progressively more hostile. Zanza's world kept drifting away from his perfect idea, and it infuriated him.

* * *

_"Vanea, do you know where your brother went off to?" _

Vanea's eyes glowed red. She stopped what she was doing - It was not often that Meyneth spoke to her. Vanea had been working on an improved system for incorporating the food from The Bionis into the diet of The Machina. She had conducted studies on the nutritional value in relation to what the Machina were eating. The results had been significant enough to work on an improved system for The Machnia. She wanted to improve the nutritional value of what the people on The Bionis were eating as well. This was something Arglas and Egil suggested to Vanea. This somehow mattered less now that Meyneth was addressing her.

"I believe he is with Arglas my lady." She sighed, "Egil is worried about Arglas - he has been acting off as of late."

_"Has he? In what way?" _

"Well, Egil had told me Arglas was working on ways to explore other worlds other than our own. He wants his descendants to one day leave the Bionis. He _wanted_ Egil to go with him." Vanea paused. "Egil said he would help him with his research, but he himself was not planning on going. He thinks this may have upset Arglas."

Arglas was the leader of the giants on the Bionis. The Bionis consisted of several different species that all had their own names – The High Entia, The Giants, The Nopom, and of course The Homs. The Homs were thought to be the lesser beings due to their lack of advances with their civilization. The Machina did not have much contact with them. They felt The Homs needed to advance on their own before seeing that more advanced civilizations existed. They were a newer species, not yet evolved to their full potential. They lived at the bottom of the Bionis away from the other advanced civilizations. They built colonies on the legs of the Bionis, and gave numbers to them. The Homs curious nature would bring them up The Bionis, and awareness of other civilizations would come into place. The isolation of The Homs was the will of Zanza – he did not want their faith to be influenced by external sources. Instead of talking with the High Entia, he would influence their beliefs. He made The High Entia believe they were superior to any races.

Meyneth reminisced about this – the Homs were the newest of Zanza's creations. He tried to create a population that had increased awareness and faith in Zanza. He had originally been against the idea of creating human like creatures on his world due to the nature of his past as a mortal, but he succumbed to the idea believing they would have faith in him more easily. Ironically, they were the beings that made up the most stories about where they came from. Perhaps Zanza gave his people too much free will. Meyneth gave The Machina just enough free will that they would not question her existence. That being said she still chose her mortals to keep everyone's faith. It was ironic that her people believed in Zanza, but his own people did not.

Meyneth never thought to make different species on the Mechonis. She always felt satisfied with her creation of The Machina. Meyneth was disgusted with the thought of so many different leaders on a world – it is a good formula for a civil war. Having one species and one leader eliminated this problem – it was the most practical way to keep the peace within her people.

Zanza's increased anger was worrying her. She had no idea what he was planning. It had been some time since their last encounter. She had not been able to communicate with him. His influence on his people was concerning. He had the power to change their ways of thinking on things that they could see in front of them. Discrimination was not a farfetched idea. She worried about Egil and his relationship with Arglas.

_"Perhaps we should tell Egil to pull back from the Bionis at this time. I fear for Egil's sanity - Especially if Arglas is in fact angry with Egil."_

"My lady, we are just trying to maintain the peace." Vanea defended. "Plus, Arglas would not forsake my brother. Their relationship is stronger than to let a small disagreement overcome them."

_"World exploration is not a small disagreement." _Meyneth knew that disagreement all too well, both from her life as a mortal and a god. _"You stated Arglas has been off lately."_

"Yes, I'm not sure what is going on, but Brother mentioned that Arglas had been constructing a sword made from the life force of the Bionis." Vanea held the bridge of her nose, as if she was trying to ignore a headache.

_"A sword – he did not say what for?" _

"No, he cannot get a straight answer from him." Vanea rubbed her forehead gently. "It is as if Arglas had dismissed his previous ideas of world exploration to work on this sword."

Meyneth was beginning to worry. The reality of what Zanza threatened was sinking in. She wouldn't put it past Zanza to get into the mind of Arglas. The Giants were one of the only species who consistently believed in Zanza's existence. It always concerned Zanza that they were on the brink of extinction. Perhaps that was why faith was so strong with them. He could influence all of his creations in certain ways, but if he were to choose someone to share a body with it would be one of The Giants. Arglas, the leader of The Giants, would be a perfect target for this.

"My brother is very worried, and he feels responsible," Vanea continued. "He did not want to hold Arglas back from his dream. He wanted to see what he could do to support him, even with the pain of knowing he may eventually lose Arglas. He feels responsible for the way he is acting now."

_ "How is he acting now?"_

"He is having trouble communicating with Arglas. He said that Arglas has been obsessed with building this sword and the fortress on the back of the Bionis." Vanea sighed, "I just do not understand. Arglas is usually such an understanding person."

A fortress on the back of the Bionis would be a perfect spot to stay defended. It would be the same concept as The Capital of the Mechonis being built on the inside rather than outside. Perhaps Zanza had finally listened to what Meyneth was saying, but not in the way she had hoped. She felt hurt thinking that Zanza would only listen to her advice to annihilate her. What exactly did he mean by that though? She feared the look in his eyes from their last encounter. She wondered what Zanza would do – if he really meant to annihilate her from the picture. She couldn't bring herself to fully believe that he wanted her gone. If that were the case he would have fought her during the last encounter. Perhaps she should have been more supportive about his situation. How did they come to this?

_"I think it is time for Egil to come home and work on being the leader of The Machina rather than trying to salvage a relationship that may be lost." _

"But… My Lady, My brother's love for Arglas cannot be stopped. He is having a very hard time right now seeing him like this."

Meyneth was not at all opposed to the idea of Arglas and Egil being together. She taught her people to love one another regardless of differences. She made sure her world embraced those relationships rather than isolate those who were in them. Zanza's views had been drastically different – which was why he had so many different species. It was as if he were setting up his world for war.

_"I think for now we can send you as the ambassador, if it is needed. This way, love affairs will not get in the way of defending our world and keeping the peace."_

"Defending our world?" Vanea tilted her head, "What ever do we need to defend our world from?"

It was then that Egil returned with the look of distraught all over his face. He looked mentally defeated. Meyneth was relieved to see him back. It was one less thing to worry about.

"I bring news from the Bionis." Egil said flatly.

"You are in the presence of Lady Meyneth Brother." Vanea scolded.

"I apologize," Egil knelt down and bowed his head.

Egil always appeared jealous that Meyneth had chosen his sister to share a body. He always thought of himself as the leader of The Machina. He loved his sister, but jealousy was noticeable in his demeanor. He always told The Machina that Vanea was more of a prophet rather than a leader, and she was okay with this. This was the will of Vanea- she preferred to not be involved with the politics of being a leader. They had a true bond as brother and sister – this was something that made Meyneth happy.

_"You may speak freely Egil. There is no need for formality at this moment. What has happened?"_

Vanea gave a confused look at Egil, who stood up and brushed himself off. He held his hands behind him. There was silence. It was as if he couldn't put what he was thinking into words at the moment.

"Brother, what happened?"

"The High Entia are building a fortress for Arglas as per his request. This is an astonishing find. The Giants and The High Entia do not normally get along. I am not sure what is happening on The Bionis, but Arglas and the people of the Bionis are not acting the way they normally do. I am having trouble gaining any information on the matter."

"Do you feel we need to stay put and work on our defenses at this time?" Vanea said, deeply interpreting what Meyneth said before. "My Lady, do you know what is going on?"

Meyneth remained quiet. Zanza did not need to make his people believe in him to have influence on their actions. This was definitely Zanza's doing. He was turning his creations into a puppet show. What was he planning though? The creation of a sword from the life force of the Bionis was concerning. Perhaps he planned on fighting Meyneth after all. She played with the idea of telling Egil and Vanea of the encounter with Zanza, but she did not want to stir fear and confusion with her people. Instead she had a request to make.

_"Vanea, Egil, I need you to make a sword from the life force of the Mechonis. I do not want any questions asked at this time. Please fulfill this request."_

There was another silence. The two looked at her quizzically. Vanea looked like she had no idea how to even go about that. Questions appeared to fill their mind. Instead of asking they just nodded. "Yes my lady." They said in unison.

_"Egil, you watched Arglas make the sword of The Bionis – you will be able to provide that knowledge to Vanea and help her make it." _


End file.
